Cleveland Marathon Contest Winner

It sounds like I'm not the only one that's excited to run the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon this year! There were 31 people who entered the contest for the free entry. There were so many heartfelt stories and all around terrific reasons to want to race with me this May in Cleveland. I wish I could give everyone an entry!

To be fair I wanted to randomly select the winner so I used Random-ize. The winner is one of my fellow Northeast Running Club (NERC) members. Congratulations Annemarie Cvijanovic! You won yourself an entry to the Cleveland Marathon race of your choice. If you already registered you can pass it on to a friend or loved one so they can join you. I will be in touch soon with the registration code.

Reasons Why I Love the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon & Giveaway

It has been an honor to be able to represent the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon as an ambassador for the past two years. The marathon staff are wonderful and my fellow ambassadors are some of my favorite friends. This week I am the featured ambassador, which means that I will be having a contest to give away a free entry to the Cleveland Marathon race of your choice. To enter simply read my post and leave a comment stating which race you would like to run and why. The winner will be randomly selected this Friday.

There are many reasons why The Cleveland Marathon is one of my favorite races:

First and foremost, it is our hometown marathon. I am proud that Cleveland has an awesome marathon that people from all over the world come to run! Some cities do not have the luxury of having their own marathon but we do. The marathon is good for the city because it brings in tourism.

Second, Cleveland was my first marathon in 2010. That race sparked a love affair that I hope lasts a lifetime. The marathon is my favorite distance running race because it is challenging and fun. You have to train hard to meet your goals and the race experiences are so amazing.

I also love the Cleveland Marathon because I love the course. It takes you through some of my favorite areas of Cleveland including Tremont, Lakewood and Rocky River as well as downtown. Probably the coolest part is running on the shoreway for the last few miles. It gives you a view of the city you don't normally get to experience while running.

Cleveland fans are awesome! There are many Clevelanders out volunteering and cheering during the race, which creates a fun, party-like atmosphere. At the finish there is also a post-race party with beer and music.

Cleveland is a great beer town so after the race you have a number of terrific options for post race lunch and brews!

I could go on and on but you get my drift. The Cleveland Marathon is awesome! So, which race would you like to do for free this year? The full? The half? The 10K? Leave me a comment below and you might be selected this Friday! Goodluck!

Green Jewel 50K Race Report & Training Update for Spring Marathon Season

Saturday was the Green Jewel 50K, which was my first big race of the season. I am happy to say that it went well! I feel like the training I've done this year helped me to get to the start confident, stronger than last year and better rested.

Steve and I parked our car at Oak Grove Reservation in Brecksville to catch the bus to the race start at Rocky River Reservation. We stayed on the bus to keep warm and use the bathroom before the 9am start. We quickly dropped off our bags for the halfway point in the race and said hi to some friends. We knew a number of people running the 50K and 50K relay. I was a little cold waiting for the start but as soon as we took off I was fine.

early miles

The first few miles were slick with some snow that had fallen in the middle of the night, early morning hours so this forced me to hold back a little and watch the footing. It felt great to be out there racing. I think I must have been smiling ear to ear as I had waited for this race for months. I took in a gel just before the first aid station and then started to pick up the pace a little. I caught up to my friends Jillian and Brandon and tailed them for a while as we weaved around the Emerald Necklace. At the 10 mile mark or so I did another gel and stopped for a drink and decided to slightly pick up the pace a little. I said hi to my friends and off I went back into my little running groove.

I felt pretty good arriving at Wallace Lake at 15 miles in. I located my bag and reloaded gels, grabbed some salt tabs and my little handheld bottle for the rest of the race. According to my first split I ran the first 15 at an 8:11 pace so I was happy with that and figured I would end up slowing down the back part of the race to at least an 8:30-9 min pace. Getting going again here was a little tougher but I got back on track and ran a few miles with my friend Mike before hitting a burst of energy and speeding up around mile 18 or so.

beautiful scenery!

Around mile 20 I remember feeling like I was on top of the world. Pink Floyd "Wish You Were Here" came on my playlist and I was singing out loud and playing the air guitar. This is generally a sign that I am having a great run. This went on for a few miles and then I came back down to reality as I approached Ridge Rd around mile 24. That is a tough hill. I walked most of it and hit the final aid station for a quick potty break and some final fuel.

The rolling hills of Brecksville were as hard as I remembered from last year. I got emotional a couple times as was the case last year. Something about these really long runs can dig deep into your soul. I love that feeling. It's like healing from the inside out - all the hurts and disappointments of my life just melting away bit by bit. This may be why I am in love with running and in some ways I feel it is a gift that was given to me to help make my life better and more rewarding.

2nd & 3rd awards!

Towards the end of the race I knew I had to make up some time so I picked up the pace the last 5k as I generally have been doing in my long runs this season. With the last couple of miles being down hill it worked out perfectly. I wasn't sure what place I was in - I actually thought I might be in first but with the relay it is hard to tell and when I crossed over I asked and learned that I was second again. Of course I wanted to win but the top spot went to a younger woman who certainly earned it with her 4:18. I was happy with 2nd having a nice PR with my 4:38. My friend Jillian ended up not too far behind me in 3rd.

After the race we headed over to Fatheads to meet some friends. I really enjoyed the tangerine-infused Headhunter and food. Then it was home to shower and head in for a massage. Needless to say I slept pretty well! Special thanks to my Sponsors: Pearl Izumi and Nuun and to my teammates on Snakebite Racing and Team Freeplay that sent cheers!

I have been recovering pretty well this week. Sunday we walked the dogs. Yesterday I did an easy spin on the bike trainer for 50 minutes and again walked. I also did the trainer today for 50 minutes and walked a couple of miles at lunch. Tomorrow I will swim and if I feel well enough  I will do a short recovery run otherwise I will walk and try to run Thursday. I would like to race this weekend but have to see how I feel later in the week and maybe I will go and use it as speed or tempo work. I am anxious to get back to the training! Boston is like 6 weeks away and Cleveland is about 10 weeks out so I still have some work to do to ensure successful races. Speaking of Cleveland, I am excited to see my fellow marathon ambassadors tomorrow night for a meet up! Love these folks!

Cabin Fever 5K Race Report

I try to force myself to do speedwork, but sometimes I talk myself out of it in favor of longer, easier workouts that I like more. What can I say I am an endurance junkie! Running shorter races like 5ks forces me to get out there and get out of my comfort zone. Such was the case with the inaugural Cabin Fever 5K yesterday. I was both looking forward to it and dreading it! With Green Jewel 50K this weekend I knew it was my last chance to get in speed work for a week or two so I signed up.

With the race being nearby at Mayfield High School and having a 9:30 start, it really was a laid back race morning. We got there to pick up our packets and bumped into some fellow Northeast Running Club (NERC) members and got in a couple of easy miles to warm up. One thing I did not like was the wind. In fact the race begins by running around the high school and then on the second loop you take a path over to some residential streets. The first half of the course was gradually uphill directly into the wind. I recall not being able to breathe very well but just pressing on. It appeared that all the young ladies struggled and I was surprised to find myself in the lead before the turnaround.

Awesome prizes :)

From the turnaround on the winds were behind us so I was able to get back into a solid pace after a not so stellar middle mile of fighting off wind. I was a little overheated and agitated but I knew I was close to the finish so I tried to stay on pace between 6:50-7. My goal had been 6;45s but with the winds it was clear that wasn't happening. I was happy to hit the high school parking lot and as I rounded the corner to the finish a gentleman yelled "first female" and I heard my husband Steve yelling for me. I pushed as hard as I could and was surprised my time of 21:49 was the best time of the day for the ladies but nevertheless I was happy with the outcome.

After the race Steve and I went for a cool down jog and then headed into the school for the pancake breakfast and awards. We sat with our NERC friends Angela and Stephanie. It was fun because each of us had a good race. Steve had run an 18:22 and won his age group and Angela and Stephanie had each won in their age groups too. For placing first female I was awarded a $50 gift certificate to Achilles Running Shop so that was pretty exciting. I also was picked for a $25 Amazon giftcard in the raffle! Later on to celebrate a good day at the races Steve and I headed to Willoughby Brewing for some tasty brews including the sensational Nutsmasher Imperial Peanut Butter Cup Porter.

Me, Steve, Angela and Stephanie w/ our awards  :)

Dirty Love Race Report & Training Update

What running couple doesn't want to kick off their Valentine's Day with a race? Especially a trail race close to home such as the case with the Dirty Love Trail 10K. This was the 3rd or 4th time my husband Steve and I have run it. Last year we missed because we were on vacation but this year we were ready to tackle the sloppy, snowy trails again. And just as I recalled it was a tough one.

Enjoying the down hill!

Steve and I got in a little warm up, used the facilities and lined up in the field of snow to head into the woods of North Chagrin Reservation. As always the start was fun and crazy. Sprinting in a field of snow in cleats will sure spike your heart rate! I tried to position myself close to the front of the ladies. I think I started in 2nd or 3rd and pretty much stayed in that position until late in the race when a couple of ladies overtook me. I ended up finishing 5th female, 1st in my AG. This was pretty consistent with the last times I have run it. Steve also finished 5th or 6th male and 1st in his AG so it was a good way to start the Valentine's day festivities.

Following the race we got in a cool down with our Snakebite Racing teammate Ken Hagan then we headed into the shelter for some food and the awards. After that we headed over to Willoughby Brewing with some Cleveland Tri Club friends for some hard-earned Peanut Butter Cup Porters! 

In general my training for the upcoming Green Jewel 50K, Boston Marathon and Cleveland Marathon have been going well. I just wrapped up a close to 60 mile run week including a tough 20 miler on Saturday and a hard week of core work/lifting. This was the second 20 miler Steve and I have done in the last couple of weeks so I am feeling pretty good going into the Green Jewel next weekend. I am cutting back the running to about 40 miles this week and adding a little more bike then next week will be pretty light with a couple short runs and rides leading into the race on Saturday. I am hoping for a speedy recovery as I have been recovering from the 20 milers pretty quickly. We are running a local 5K this Sunday so that will be a nice change of pace to do something short and fast versus longer and slower. I am hoping for semi decent weather for that because in Cleveland in February you never know what to expect!

New Year = A New Challenge to Conquer

My husband Steve and I have been talking for a little while about doing a longer ultra. With one of our big goals now being to complete a 100 mile ultra for his 50th bday in 2017, we decided to sign up for the inaugural Conquer the Castle 100K, which takes place conveniently close to our home in November of this year. This will be a big challenge for us but one that we can have a lot of fun training for all year. The timing is good since it's late in the year we can have a great spring running season, a fun summer triathlon season and then close out the year with a challenging fall running season and then hopefully shut it down for a little while.

I am excited and also admittedly a little nervous about running a race that is 62 miles long, but I also have 9 months to prepare myself so I feel that it is doable. The goal will be to just finish in one piece with no major injuries. In order to reach the goal I have a plan. Lots of running, some cross training, weekly yoga and strength training, planned recovery weeks every 3rd of 4th week of training and some good old fashioned rest days/weeks. I will be posting updates on the training throughout the season. Wish me luck!

Run for Regis Race Report & Spring Training Update

Prerace with my love

Regis Race Report: 

Last weekend was the the first race of 2016. Steve and I ran the Run for Regis trail half marathon in Peninsula. This was our second time doing the race or "fun run" as they call it. It was not as cold this year with temps in the 20s and there was not much snow on the trails but there were icy sections and the trails were frozen with jagged footprints that kindof hurt to run on.

Prior to the race we had done a warmup and I twisted my right ankle pretty good so I was nervous about it holding up for the 13.1 but fortunately it was not an issue. The course is very hilly and technical in some sections and has several sets of stairs. This made for a slow run for me. I would have liked to have been faster but I was a little extra cautious with some big races approaching including Boston Marathon and I got lost on the second loop and had to stop and talk with the RDs so I lost some time here. It wasn't a huge deal since this was a "fun run" race anyways and really just an ass kicker of a race to get me toughened up for Green Jewel and Boston.

Out on the course

My time of 2:13 was a few minutes faster despite getting lost so I think I could have done a little better without the screw up. I ended up 4th female overall and in my AG. Tough AG! Steve ended up 3rd in the guys field.

After the race we changed into warm, dry clothes headed over to the Winking Lizard in Peninsula with friends for food and beer. I felt okay the rest of the day but was pretty sore Monday and Tuesday so went easy with the running. By Wednesday I was able to get in a double run as well as today so I am back to good now.

Quick Training Update:

Overall my training has been going well. Two weeks ago I was up to 50 miles of running. Last week I ended up at 38 with the race and I will have 50 in again this week. I've been riding my trainer for 45-60 mins 3-4 times a week to keep the bike fitness and I am lifting at least twice a week. I have not been in the pool much yet this year as I had a neck strain for a few weeks and was working with my chiropractor to correct that. I seem to be better so I will likely add the pool back in at least once a week for now. With Green Jewel 50K, Boston Marathon and then Cleveland Marathon I am focusing more effort on running for obvious reasons. I am also doing the Great Western Reserve 70.3 tri in mid June so I will start to add longer bike rides by early March as I plan to use the bike and swim a good deal to aid in my recovery for all my long running races. This is where triathlon really pays off! This will lead into Ironman OH 70.3 in August followed up by some fall marathons and a new challenge I will be posting about next week so stay tuned for details!